Colfax appoints Mike Buchner to village board

By LeAnn R. Ralph

COLFAX — The Colfax Village Board has appointed village resident Mike Buchner to serve as the trustee for the one-year term ending April 15, 2014.

The village board appointed Buchner at the April 22 meeting.

Scott Gunnufson, village president, had previously served as the trustee for that position.

No candidates filed nomination papers in January for the one-year trustee term in the April 2 election, and no write-in candidates launched a campaign for the position after the January filing deadline.

Chris Olson, former village trustee, also submitted a letter of interest to the village board for the one-year trustee position.

Olson filed nomination papers for the April 2 election for both the village president position and the trustee position that he held.

Village residents elected Gunnufson as village president, and out of a field of four, elected Susan Olson, Beverly Schauer and Annie Schieber as trustees.

Buchner told the village board he had grown up around Colfax, had graduated from Colfax High School, had attended UW-River Falls and UW-Eau Claire, and had moved back to Colfax in 2001.

From 2002 to 2010, Buchner worked for the Pember Company installing curb and gutter, water mains, storm sewers and sanitary sewers. He currently works for the Dunn County Highway Department and also serves on the Colfax Community Fire Department.

Olson noted that he had served on the village board for four years, had served on the parks and cemetery committee and had been working on the annexation for Evergreen Cemetery.

Olson said he moved back to Colfax five years ago and had previously worked for the City of Hudson.

A motion to appoint Olson to the village board failed on a vote of four “no” to two “yes.”

Gunnufson and village trustees Schauer, Schieber, and Susan Olson voted against the motion.

Village trustees Mark Halpin and Richard Johnson voted in favor of the motion.

A motion to appoint Buchner to the village board was approved on a vote of four “yes” to two “no.”

Gunnufson, Schauer, Schieber and Susan Olson voted in favor of the motion.

Halpin and Johnson voted against the motion.

Mike Laska had originally filled the position Buchner will assume on the village board. Following Laska’s resignation, the village board appointed Tina Bradford. Following Bradford’s resignation, the village board appointed Gunnufson.